Boys dies in shooting at gun club

WHO IN THEIR RIGHT MIND GIVES AN EIGHT YEAR OLD CHILD, YES CHILD, A GUN - NEVER MIND AN UZI???? I HOPE DSS INVESTIGATES AS WELL AND REMOVES ALL OTHER CHILDREN FOR THEIR SAFETY AND PROTECTION

another sad story proving that guns are not a sport, esp with children, and families who insist that it is safe, and that children can be taught 'respect' for guns and the sport, are totally wrong and are neglectful by putting their children in unnecessary danger

Can someone tell me what an 8 year old is doing at a gun club in the first place? Never mind the fact that is was an AUTOMATIC WEAPON he shot him self with.....what is the is world coming to? Are we all doomed to die as a result of stupidity?

I'll be happy to give you my 'statement' about this.
I am sick to death of reading these kinds of senseless tradgies all the time.
There is something wrong, with me trying to visualize an 8 yr. old little boy,
being alowed to 'fire' an UZI ? I'm sorry. What is wrong with this picture?
A b - b gun is (pushing it) nevermind automatic weapons !! ?

Only a insane lunatic, would allow a eight year old child to handle an Uzi. Everyone including the father should be jailed!

There needs to be a law that kids that age shouldn't be at gun clubs. What a sad thing that needn't happen.

Give a kid a gun and look what happens. Way to go Dad

Fully automatic! That's great. Listen, I am a firearm enthusiast. I started target shooting when I was 11 with my uncles and grandfather. They taught me to be safe and be aware at all times. I have no issue with firearms in general, but why the heck would anyone need to own a fully automatic uzi? You can't hunt with a fully automatic uzi, target shooting with one sounds pretty dumb to me. ..and who in their right mind would let an 8 year old anywhere near an unrestricted submachine gun? The killing may have been an accident, but that is why we have MANSLAUGHTER laws. Who is at fault here? Someone needs to never own a firearm again.

I just think this is ridiculus. A poor child had to die because for some
reason, a parent thought an 8 yr old was strong enough to fire, and
support an Uzi? What the hell? The person who brought the boy to
the range, needs to be charged with his death.

These weapons are safe and neccessary. You can pry my uzi from my cold, dead, hands...

An eight year old shooting a machine gun? No brain parents thats what you have here. Let an eight year old be and eight year old, give him some toys to play with and experience the innocence of youth. Gun clubs should have a age mininum. Children and guns don no mix. The parent should be held accoutable for child neglect.

My heart and prayers go out to this family during this very tragic time. I am so sad that such a young life was lost. This is just SO sad to me.

The child's death was not caused by a firearm Matt, you cannot place responsibility or blame on an inanimate object. Both lie with the instructor and parent, perhaps an eight year old child with small hands should not be expected to control such a firearm. And perhaps you could try to report the news objectively, but that's not in style anymore is it?

Darwinism

I too question the wisdom of children even being at such an event, let alone being allowed handle and shoot a loaded uzi. Of course it's tragic, senseless and a horrible thing for the family and other children and people who witnessed this event. I agree that children should not be at such an event, but if they are, would it not be more appropriate to have a child's section and allow target practice with paint ball or squirt guns? My father was both a hunter and a police officer. There were several guns in our house and all four children knew where they were kept. We also knew dad hid the ammo in another spot. We were taught never to touch these weapons, we understood their use and the damage they could do. Teaching a child about guns should not and need not be a hands on process. Child endangerment, no doubt.

I guess .22 rimfires aren't cool to shoot at machine gun shootouts.

I'm surprised they didn't start him out with Ma-Deuce (.50 cal Browning MG).

This is not Somalia or the Congo. Children should not be handleing automatic weapons. His father and the event coordinators are responsible for his death. The gun club I belong to allows 1 round to be loaded into a rifle at any time on the target range.

I hate saying this, but the rest of the world think Americans are crazy and a little stupid. Eight year old shooting a gun- if that's not crazy and stupid, I don't know what is.
And by the way, I'm an American working in Singapore - where the only guns are held by the police and army. Almost no one gets shot here.

its very sad, to hear news like this, i have 3year girl, and has a parent one must be very vigilant with their children, especially in place like this, no excuses, on how perfect u must be with your children in a gun club.

Before the Congress allowed the Brady Bill to expire several years ago, guns like this were illegal. Bush said he'd sign legislation to extend the bill if it ever reached his desk, knowing full well that the congress would never let that happen. There is no reason any Citizen should be allowed to possess a fully or even a semi automatic weapon. They're only made for one thing... extinguishing human life. So, like an earlier poster said, blame the supervisors, blame the parent, but I say, also blame the weapon. Why would our government allow this to happen. Someone should hold them responsible.A. G

You got to love it when 8 yr olds practice their 2nd amendment rights.

I too an a apst gunclub member. I started shooting rifles (.22 Long) at the age of 12. That is the clubs rules I came from. No one under 12 and we were never allowed to use other than classified as "small arms" weaponry and as one gengtleman stated, it had to be a single bolt action one shot load at a time. No clips, no rapid fire and certainly no semi or full automatics. Shame on that club and the neglegence which caused a loss of a very young childs life.

western MA.

actually there was a loophole that did allow SOME registered owners to have fully automatic weapons but i think it was a federal registry or something. On the other hand who gives an 8 year old an automatic Uzi? those things are hard for an adult to try and control

Proof that the racists are gunning up for an Obama Presidency. That's what's really going on. The Eric Rudolphs and Timmy McVeighs are coming out of the woodwork. Forget about Black Water or National Guard. Fear and Loathe the rightwing religious zealots that are drying their wings. Everyone at that gun range is complicit and guilty of criminal charges. Conspiracy is a serious crime.

On the gun club's ad for this event, they include the following:
"Targets Include: Vehicles, Pumpkins, & other fun stuff we can’t print here!!!!!"
Would some reporters look into this and find out what the other "unprintable" targets were? The nutcase McCain worker who tried to fake being the victim of an assault in Pittsburgh has a history of recruiting YGOP members at events featuring target shooting of famous Dem politicians, as well as some kind of "Catch the Illegal Immigrant" "games". So were these unprintable targets at the gun club ,merely animals on the endangered species lists, or stereotypes of Muslims or other minorities?

I am completely unabe to understand anyone giving an 8 year old child a full automatic weapon to fire. I served in WW2 and fired many automatic weapons., Every full auto weapon has a tendecy to rise, In basic training this was the first warning we got about full auto weapons. The Westfield club needs a complete review of it's safety procedures.

What the hell! Does this kid have really stupid parents or what? They should be ashamed of themselves they practically killed their own kid!

Correction to A.N. Gorham's comment:
1> The Brady Bill is not the same as Bill Clinton's assault weapon ban.
2> The assault weapons ban had absolutely nothing to do with automatic firearms. The assault weapons ban dealt only with SEMI-automatic firearms that had certain cosmetic features. An "assault weapon", as defined by the firearm industry and the rest of the world, is an automatic rifle, but the Clinton Administration manufactured their own bogus definition of the term "assault weapon." Bill Clinton's assault weapon ban would have had no effect on this tragic event.

I was not at the Westfield event, thus I didn't see what happened. I think it is irresponsible to pass judgment on the father or the instructor/gun owner who was supervising the child. Someone should have been hovering over the child to make sure that the gun stayed pointed in a safe direction.

But, what should have happened, was:
- have the kid shoot the gun on semi-auto with one round in the magazine
- if he handles that OK, have him do it a few more times
- if he handles that OK, load 5 rounds into the magazine and have him shoot that on semi-auto (this is what the NRA teaches its instructor to do when training adults)
- ...load two or three rounds into the magazine and have him shoot that on FULL auto
- at this point they would have seen that the recoil/muzzle jump was too much for the kid and no one would have gotten injured.

I don't know if they followed a similar procedure or not, so I can't really say if they were negligent or not. Either way, the family and the person (instructor or gun owner) supervising the kid must be devastated over what happened. It is a horrible tragedy.

nothing wrong with the 8 year old boy shooting the uzi. but the dad shoulda been holding the gun for him or supporting him. automatic weapons are crazy. espeically an uzi.

My thoughts and prayers go out to the family.
I have an 8 year old girl, no parent in their right mind should of exposed their child to this sort of violence. That is my opinion. Just think of the kids who got a first hand view of a shooting dealth! All of the parents will have a tough road of recovery ahead of them and I wish them the best of luck. I just hope their view and judgement of what is acceptable changes. This is just rediculious!

Guns should only be held by trained adults above 21!

To start I am an NRA Instructor. As myself and my co-instructors have heard of this accident we are very upset. We teach a kid safe program here in CT. When we hear of these incidents we want to just scream at the parent(s) for not thinking. I have fired an automatic Uzi in the past, i am six foot two and 220 Lbs. the weapon still climbed when i fired it. what parent in their right mind would think a eight year old could handle this weapon. the instructor should have stop this sequence before it took place. then explained there are .22 caliber firearms for the younger people to shoot. (with our company we do not allow a child to fire a pistol or large caliber firearms.) We teach the younger crowd starting in the class room then proceed to the range with air guns or >22 Caliber rifles to start depending on the age. we do not teach any one under the age of 14 years old. we believee the maturizism is has not been formed in most children till then. meaning they do not understand the consiquences behind what could happen. the father and the instrucor will have to live with this for the rest of thier lives. god bless them to continue living with this on thier shoulders. i hope that they remove the instructor from this position for he has shown he is negligent in his training as an instructor. As an avid gun owner and instructor i am sorry to read this news. and send my dearest sypathy to the childs family

As an avid gun owner and enthusist, I will say to those "anti-gun" people out there that there is nothing wrong with owning a gun or rifle, or firing one, as long as it is done safely.
For an 8 year old to fire a full-auto uzi at a supervised gun club event is absolutely fine- if it is done SAFELY.
THis was obviously not the case here.
greg October 27, 08 12:22 PM had the perfect protocol for what SHOULD have been done.. By the second or third stage it would have been appearant that he could not handle the weapon correctly.
Take guns away from legal gun owners you will see a MARKED increase in gun violence as the criminal with the ILLEGAL AND UNREGISTERED guns will be targeting the unarmed citizens.

That's a fact. Look at D.C. versus the STATE of Utah.

Wow, you only get one chance at life and what to these imbeciles choose to do with it? Give their kids Uzi's to play with, oraganize gun shows that allow kids in for free, call yourself a "Certified Firearms Instructor" and "instruct" an 8yo kid how to use it. Poor kid, not only have you wasted a child's life... you've wasted your own. PATHETIC.

First of all, whether you are for or against guns, this is a tragedy. A young, innocent life was just taken from us too quickly and perhaps instead of placing blame we could show some compassion for the family. They have just suffered a loss that no parent should ever suffer. It is totally unnatural for a parent to loose a child no matter what the circumstance. Perhaps we could use this comment site as a way to show the family that our thoughts and prayers are with them. I'm sure that they could use the additional prayers. Accidents happen every day, and we should never take the ones around us for granted. Please show some compassion for this poor family. They are going through a hard enough time as it is. They don't need the opinionated public to condemn them for choices that they cannot change.

wow this is so sad/no way my kids will be doing that

Let's face it. With a Dad like that, this kid was destined to grow up to be a dumb ignorant fool just like his dad. He probably did it on purpose to do us all a favor.
And for all you idiots with warm fuzzy stories of yesteryear when you childishly scampered barefoot through fields of guns and ammo as a babe, with only the threat of Daddy being 'awful angry' if you mess with his artillery to keep you safe. Daddy did you a disservice. You to are a dumb ignorant fool!
But of course you don't feel stupid do you?
It's part of the stupidity.
Evolve. Get rid of your guns responsibly. NO - Not in the trash. R.I.P Kid.

Natural selection.

This whole gun-toting ideology and its people will remove themselves from America if congress won't.

what a sorry excuse for a parent... here... ill let my 8 year old shoot an uzi... he should be locked up for negligence

All you crazies blaming the gun are certifiable. To think an inanimate object has a will of it's own is shear lunacy. Your reactionary babble on helps destroy freedom when you start demanding things be banned. You call yourselves a lover of freedom while voting for McCain or Obama. You really are crazy.

Ugh, as someone from a town over from Westfield, this is not the way to get Western Mass on the map. Damn shame.

kid didnt deserve to die, but whenu have an idiot for a father, well, cant say i feel bad for the dad, just the kid

Wow, must be a McBush supporter as he clearly lacks any common sense whatsoever!
www.anonymity.cz.tc

Excellent, another of my comrades as committed a premeditated murder!
I think the humans are starting to catch wind that we firearms are an intelligent race of beings with full consciousness of the world around us. I can only guess that's why they would blame us guns, not the people who use them wrong!

Signed,
The Infamous AK-47

Look I understand how saddening this is, and how unnecessary and stupid it seems, but honestly this is not as bad as it seems. If the child was taught proper gun safety and allowed to use a less powerful gun there's no reason an 8 year old shouldn't be allowed to operate a firearm. A couple of centuries ago and an 8 year old would have had to know how to use one. I shot my first gun when I was 9 and somehow I survived.

Father of the year!!!

Too bad the kid didn't take the parent/instructor out with him. We could use a few less people like them.
There's nothing wrong with guns themselves, but the psychos that actually meet up for gun meets instead of just using them for hunting and other responsible use deserve this kind of bad publicity and mockery.
I sincerely hope the organizers of that meet are jailed, and the parents lose any other surviving children they might have.
To the people claiming that there's nothing wrong with giving a child an Uzi, may your children be next.

This is one of those "things" that could have been prevented. I have young children (oldest is 7) that I will someday take to a firing range and teach them how to fire a gun. That day is still a few years off, and there's no way in hell I would use anything other than an air rifle or BB gun to start off with.

The real tragedy is that this 8-year old child was SUPERVISED, and he died because of at least two incredibly ignorant people who had zero common sense. The range instructor and the parent(s) on-site should be held accountable for this incident, 100%.

How many other people could have been injured or killed if the child had turned the gun any other direction?

Guns don't kill people on their own. In this case, the gun had a whole lot of "stupid" helping out.

"Take guns away from legal gun owners you will see a MARKED increase in gun violence as the criminal with the ILLEGAL AND UNREGISTERED guns will be targeting the unarmed citizens.

That's a fact. Look at D.C. versus the STATE of Utah."

the unmentionable thing here is demographics. that will play a lot more into violence than gun availability.

BOOM! HEADSHOT!

BOOM! HEADSHOT!

The ignorance in some of these comments is outstanding. No, a kid should not be given an Uzi, but saying that oh god, an eight year old shouldn't even be able to use a bb gun? Hooray, the media has effectively made you people afraid of an inanimate object made of wood and metal. While the parent in this situation obviously used bad judgment, saying that all gun owners are like this and that kids should not be taught to shoot is ridiculous. If no one teaches them proper gun handling and safety, then if they ever do come across a gun, be it at a friends house or wherever, they will not be equipped with the knowledge to handle it safely.

Not to mention, if they do not learn how to handle a gun and that it is nothing to be afraid of they may grow up to one day be like all of you, afraid of a simple machine...

The father needs to go to jain, and the gun club needs to be shutdown for allowing children to fire uzi machine guns. The constitutional right to bear arms I don't think was meant to allow 8 year old to fire machine guns!

only in america...

this sickening...
how can you be pro-guns?
all they do is cause hurt and pain

That is horrible. What a terrible tragedy for all involved. My heart goes out to the family.

Even the dad deserves our sympathy. Clearly he made a grave error in judgment, but can any of us say we have never made such an error? The rest of us are just lucky that we haven't have to face the consequences of our biggest mistakes.

Idiot!!! What fool gives his 8 yr old a gun to shoot?! I don't care if it IS at an "event." Whatever happened to taking your CHILD to a CHILD event?!!
I have 6 children and 13 grandchildren and none of them have ever handled a gun, and have no desire to do so.

Its a pity that poor kid had to be born to such a shame of a father. Sad indeed. Anything past a bb gun is unacceptable for that kid to even touch. I feel so bad for the kids mom

This is why you have to expose your kids to guns as soon as possible and teach them gun safety

This boys parent obviously failed to train his son in the basics of barrel and trigger discipline.

What the fuck is wrong with you Americans.

I think it was ok that he was teaching a child how to fire a weapon right and going shooting, but an Uzi? That is a little much. I was taught how to fire a weapon younger than that, but I was using air rifles and BB guns.

This will again fall on the guns and not on the parents head where it should fall. Negligent parents lead to these accidents.

The recoil should've pushed the gun towards the parent and shot him instead.

Bummer. My sympathies to all those involved - family, friends, witnesses to the incident. Someone should've taught the child the Weaver Stance before handing him a pistol...

Stay safe.

Devon:

"Take guns away from legal gun owners you will see a MARKED increase in gun violence as the criminal with the ILLEGAL AND UNREGISTERED guns will be targeting the unarmed citizens. That's a fact."

If that's such a fact, why don't countries with more restrictive gun laws show a massive increase in handgun homicides? In Australia - where, as you say, guns are only in the hands of criminals or at registered gun clubs - there is almost zero gun related crime. Less availability makes weapons harder to obtain for criminals and easier for police to track. I hear about gun violence maybe 10 ten times a year in Australia, and I'd say 7/10 of those incidents are gang warfare. When guns are tough to obtain, crims don't waste them on civilians.

I live with zero fear of gun related crime, yet I've seen five different gun crime articles coming out of the US just today. Are you honestly saying that wide spread availability of high powered firearms across the US reduces the possibility of gun crime? Can you honestly say that with a straight face?

To the people who believe there is no reason to need a semi- or fully-automatic weapon: just wait until the government/criminals/both are the only ones with guns. I'm not paranoid or delusional. Those in the U.K. already voluntarily gave up their gun rights, and look how quickly other rights are to follow. Big brother is (literally) watching them now. Don't say I didn't tell you so.

an excellent example of natural selection taking its course. if parents are stupid enough to let their kids fire guns (let alone an 8 yr old with an uzi) then they dont deserve to pass on their genes

"Guns don't kill people. People kill people" (or themselves).

Hey September,
My family's farm lies under a couple of hundred feet of water in 'western mass' so you stuck up jackasses in the eastern part of the state can water your damn lawns. Are you supposed to be in some way superior because you live on the other side of 148? I guess us ignorant folk out west with 5 colleges in two towns should just exist to serve you leaf peepers ice cream cones on your way to Stratton. Your comment though attempting to be witty and aloof, only reveals your true ignorance. Western Mass should have long ago become its own state and started charging you people to enter it. We would have done better as part of Vermont.

And for all of you people ready to give up your rights your forefathers fought, bled, and died for in the revolution, shame on you. You of all people as the sons and daughter s of patriots should know better. One bad apple and you are all ready to wipe your backsides with the Constitution of the United States of America. You ought to be ashamed of yourselves. What would your ancestors think of you if they heard you talking like that.

As for judging this guy, I am assuming that you were all there and saw exactly what happened right? Because the paper is always 100% accurate on everything it reports. Their job isn't to sell papers with sensational headlines or anyhing like that is it?

Eastern Mass...

The US needs to reassess all policies when it comes to gun laws. How many stories like this do they need to reform their out of date thinking?

A total tragedy.
However, the people who handed him the gun are irresponsible. That doesn't justify an end to firearms like some are calling for. Kids die doing stupid things every day -- and it is tragic.

Unobstructed gun ownership is a fundamental right of Americans, since our Nation's founding. People who dislike this right should live elsewhere. Or come out here to California, where we gun owners have a very negative stigma.

GATDAMIT THERE IS NUTHIN WRONG WITH OWNING A FULLY AUTOMATIC GUN AND TEACHING YOUR CHILDREN TO CONTROL IT. THEY ARE JUST GOING TO GET ONE ANYWAY (PROBABLY ON THE EBAY) AND IF YOU DONT TEACH THEM HOW TO USE IT THEY ARE JUST GOING TO HURT THEMSELVES

WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF THE RUSKIES TOOK OVER ONE DAY AND NONE OF WE WAS ALLOWED TO OWN A VULCAN .50 CALIBER MOUNTED MACHINE GUN? WHAT THEN YOU LIEBERALS?

I FOR ONE WANT MY CHILD TO KNOW HOW TO CONTROL A WEAPON SO THAT HE WILL BE ABLE TO PROTECT HIMSELF WHEN HE NEEDS TO

Charlton Heston, "Here's my credo. There are no good guns, There are no bad guns. A gun in the hands of a bad man is a bad thing. Any gun in the hands of a good man is no threat to anyone, except bad people." Ironic. Poor innocent kid.

Posted by Devon October 27, 08 04:02 PM
"Take guns away from legal gun owners you will see a MARKED increase in gun violence as the criminal with the ILLEGAL AND UNREGISTERED guns will be targeting the unarmed citizens.
That's a fact. Look at D.C. versus the STATE of Utah."

By that logic, if everyone had a gun there would be no gun crime.
There are many more variables in the D.C. vs Utah debate than gun control laws, too.

I love how the first commenter finally figured out how to get her capitalization out of "full auto" just in time for the last two letters of her name.
Anyway, this is a bad parenting story, not a gun control story. The same parent could have handed his kid a mountain lion, 9 ton weight, or other object that no reasonable person would want to possess, let alone put in the control of an eight year old.

Ahhh well. Another one out of the gene pool.

I know --- cold! ---- but how many other kids died that day (e.g. in Darfur) through less fault than their father's?

How in f*cking hell did not one experienced adult realize that the recoil of a automatic machine gun is to much for an 8 year old. Pathetically stupid!

God help the father of that boy...what a sad, sad fool for letting his 8 year old child shoot an Uzi. Even a hillbilly should know not to give an 8 year old kid a gun. The members of the organization that put an Uzi in the hands of this child deserve every night of lost sleep they have coming to them.

One word: Tragedy

If the boy had died to or from the event in a car accident, there would be no story and no public interest. This sad and stupid event is however an anomaly in sanctioned gun training for kids. While I support the NRA and a citizen's right to a firearm, I also question the judgment of any adult who would allow an eight year old to be anywhere near an Uzi or other powerful weapon with strong recoil. Unfortunately, this story as other anomalous stories will be come fuel to the anti-gun lobby.

Terribly sad....
I grew up in NWPA where hunting and guns are a way of life, so I can't say get rid of all the guns, But I do find it strange that anyone in their right might thinks automatic weapons are necessary... for what?

They are designed to KILL HUMAN BEINGS.

And sadly that is what happended here

rest in peace little one

To: Joe Sixpack

You are the reason things like this happen!

as long as you stupid hillbillies keep it out of San Francisco. I'd rather be gay, in love and alive!

Hi
i am from New Zealand
We struggle here to understand the interlect or lack of, that many parents have in the USA.
garry

Actually, turn out that Guns DO Kill People.

May you rot in Hell, Charleton Heston.

My god, the dad is a idiot........

Children's Defense Fund National Fact: Each Day in America ----8 children or teens are killed by firearms. Sad that this young boy is on that list.

I don't feel sorry, nor bad for anyone involved. Columbine High School, Virgina Tech, the list goes on and on. People say "Can you believe that?"... Yes I can. We live in a country that has as many weapons as people. Why the hell are people so shocked when this happens? It is completely beyond me.

This kid, like thousands of others, will be forgotten soon. And rest assured, it will happen again, soon.

You want the second amendment, fine. Handgun and automatic rifles, whatever. Don't cry when someone shoots up a school or a mall or a kid dies.

You want to stop this insanity? Ban handguns and semi / full automatic rifles, period. The deaths by guns in this country would drop 90% I guarantee it.

However that will NEVER happen in this country. So live with it people, and stop whining what a tragedy it is. It's not. Tragedies are uncommon, this happens everyday.You live by the sword, you die by it..

You cannot have it both ways.

They pried the gun out of his cold, dead, hand...praises to the NRA for keeping guns in the hands of children.

I am a fairly liberal guy with an Ivy league education, but I don't see what legislation we would need to pass to deal with this situation. The situation was obviously not safe and someone is clearly liable for that. There are many things an 8 year old cannot do safely (drive a car, fly a plane, opperate a jack hammer, etc.), but that doesn;t make that activity inherently unsafe for anyone. Having shot many many different guns in my life I personally cannot imagine how an 8 year old could control a micro Uzi but perhaps it is possible if done properly. Lets not go pass another law to deal with this, lets just be way more careful about what we let our children do.

Certainly a tragic event. Strictly a case of bad parenting and nothing else.

Bah! What the fuzz for ? Is it really worth reporting ?

If it had happended in Irak, one would have called it "collateral casualty", right ? Buy the father a new gun model and, in a few weeks, he will have forgotten the incident...

"To preserve liberty, it is essential that the whole body of the people always possess arms, and be taught alike, especially when young, how to use them."
Richard Henry Lee

learn to spell >> learn to shoot.
"maturizism ." That's not even a spelling mistake.

My son is almost 8. He would loooooove to shoot an Uzi. If I let him shoot himself in the head with one, I would fully expect everyone I met for the rest of my life to spit on me and call me a fuck-brain. If that was the worst of it, I'd be lucky.

That poor family. I don't pray very often, but I pray that God looks after that family. Stupid as they are... if you're not crying, you have no soul.

pwnd

How many children died last year because parents put them on ATVs or snowmobiles that they couldn't handle? Parents make bad decisions everyday that cost kids their lives. It isn't Bush's fault and it isn't a political question.

Thanks, Dad. Now excuse me while I go throw up.

i blame the child. this kid gets a darwin award for being too weak to fire a gun.

when I was 8, I could dual wield desert eagles and uzis

Guns are made for killing.
This gun was manufactured to kill human beings.
When we create artifacts designed to deal death...
we get exactly what we signed up for.
Criticizing the victims gets us nowhere.
The culture itself is toxic, and deadly.

Troll central sad , the only thing lacking from the alleged NRA fruitcakes is the two words "Common Sense" for the means never justify the ends and the ends never justify the means period .

As for the tragic death of the child , both the parents and the club president and secretary should be charged as accessories to a felony murder , tried and convicted of involuntary murder and jailed for about ten to twenty years apiece sounds about fair to me , for we are told America is a "law and order country" period and justice is to dealt to all criminals (or is it unjustice for a minority and the rich use lawyers to evade their criminality ). If truth be told they were the ones who pulled the trigger and no amount of backsliding or excuses will ever cover the total stupidity of them all although many of the posters are it appears devoid of common sense and are making excuses for their inherent stupidity as many are well aware of in any open hunting season as to just how many fellow dangerous fools out there with loaded gun as Dick Cheney is well aware of and can testify to that fact too .

I am sure that this kid's dad thought that it must be ok to let his kid try the gun out if it is legal; I put my kid on a horse when he was five because the horse ranch folks said it was ok; he was thrown by the horse and broke his arm. I let my kids take archery and rifle shooting at boy scout camp, even though I am personally opposed to the use of guns for sport (because all the other kids were allowed and certified instructors were present). So Idon't judge him (dad) for putting his kid in harm's way; I wonder just how many deaths by gunfire will take for Americans to accept the reality that gun do indeed kill people and that the price we pay for our gun culture is quite dear.

I shot my first deer when I was five ( with my mom, right there with me, teaching me). My grandparents, parents, and brothers all
hunted when I was growing up. We lived in the city, but had ties to ranches
in west Texas. I have fired full automatics when it was neccessary before. I don't own any, though I own semi-autos, hand, rifle, as well as all sorts of
hunting rifles and shotguns. I believe in the right to bear arms, not just for hunting, but also for defense of our country, from all enemies, both foreign and domestic. YET, I cannot understand the absolute STUPIDITY of the father
who put a tool like an uzi in his childs hands. Why not a chain saw, or or a 10 inch circular saw. Why wasn't dad holding the gun with him like he should have been? CLOSE SUPERVISION doesn't just mean standing around being stupid with your friends, showing off how cool your kid is. This was just so really dumb and horrible. Why not just give him the keys to the car, and send him into town for some sodas. Guns are important tools that require training and caution. Now, he must live life knowing he killed his child through stupidity, and the need to prove something. Why not give the child a hydraulic jack, and put him under the car to work on it. Hell on earth for the family now.

the article and comments allowed are sign of the coming economic collapse. fear the politician that wants to take away your guns.

U.S.A Look & Learn ! , I strongly believe children work & Play in such U.S.A Gun clubs & Auctions. Just sent $50k of weapons to ROCK ISLAND AUCTION COMPANY Moline & my Inventory Holdings Consignor list does not match any Weapon I freighted and the company document LOOKS like a 8 year old wrote it.

>For an 8 year old to fire a full-auto uzi at a supervised gun club event is
>absolutely fine- if it is done SAFELY.
What about a 6 year old?
What about a 4 year old?
Now you think I am not being serious. Yet the psychological differences between a 4 year old and an 8 year old are not that drastic.
Why would you think that at the age of 8, a human being has formulated the necessary mental capacities to handle an object whose purpose is to kill?
Should we be letting "properly trained" 8 year olds drive Corvettes on the highway? Should we let them throw grenades? Maybe they can be properly trained to drive and fire an M-1 Abrams tank. At least IN the tank, the child would be relatively secure.
Having spent 9 years in the Army, 1 of them in Desert Storm, I can say that the handling of a fully automatic weapon is something that one does not treat like a first baseball game. It was designed to kill - quickly and efficiently.
And it did.
It is truly sad when a parent causes the death of their child through negligence.

Fully automatic! That's great. Listen, I am a firearm enthusiast. I started target shooting when I was 11 with my uncles and grandfather. They taught me to be safe and be aware at all times. I have no issue with firearms in general, but why the heck would anyone need to own a fully automatic uzi? You can't hunt with a fully automatic uzi, target shooting with one sounds pretty dumb to me. ..and who in their right mind would let an 8 year old anywhere near an unrestricted submachine gun? The killing may have been an accident, but that is why we have MANSLAUGHTER laws. Who is at fault here? Someone needs to never own a firearm again.
Posted by Mark L from Salem October 27, 08 07:43 AM

Obviously you didn't read the article and in it it clearly states that he was shooting at a pumpkin and that his dad didn't own the gun but the gun club did

What a tragidy! The event organizers and the parents are totally responsible. Giving an Uzi to an 8 year old, how stupid and reckless!!

What a tragedy and what were the ones who were supposed to be in charge and the dad thinking? I grew up with guns in the house but we knew to leave them alone. We have guns, our son has guns and our granddaughter has guns because she has learned to hunt at age 24. So, I am not anti gun but for sure I'm anti eight year olds even holding an empty one. Where we live now young kids are taken deer hunting and turkey hunting. Some young as eight years old. Girls as well as boys. That seems to be the thing to teach their kids...how to kill. The younger the beter.

Funny stuff here. tragic too. And worse yet the Uzi will get a bad rap. I am proud of the second amendment and this should serve as a warning that just because you can give birth doesn't make you a parent.
Jeeze stoopid father. hope he's proud now.

Thank God for the NRA, and the masses of misguided people that support the proliforation of any kind of weapon to be owned, and used by a society that is by and large illiterate, watches inane TV, is obese, and basically LAZY.

While I mourn for the family's loss, it should not be unexpected. We, as a nation, have become accustomed to these tragic stories; and yet we do nothing. We continue to regard these instances as "too bad, so sad".

If you really think about it, I do not think that our Forefathers ever imagined that what they wrote in the constitution would lead to the anarchy (in relation to being armed), that we have today in this wonderful country of ours. They would be rolling over in their graves knowing the havoc that their words have wrought.

No worries; everyone is upset over this incident , now. Everyone has been upset over previous incidents, for awhile. And everyone will continue to be outraged over future incidents of drive-by shootings, road rage shootings, murder suicides, convenience store robberies/murders, murder for sport, murder for hire, murder just because, and just because it happens to be convenient; BECAUSE THERE IS A GUN CONVENIENT!!!

Don't be fooled by the rightous religious in their advocacy of gun rights. The only reason that they feel a need for a gun is that they fear retribution on this earth from reasonable people that have just had enough of their hyprococies.

They should not fear the people that disagree with them, because those people are gentle and respectful of others, their lives, their lifestyles, and a "Golden Rule" sort of attitude; these religious "Rights" need only to fear God.

He will ask, them what part of "Judge not, lest ye be judged", "Love thy neighbor as thyself", and "Cast no stones" did you not understand?

Being a loving God, He will be in a quandry as to what to do with all of these "holier than thou" sort of people. I would not want to He, nor would I want to be the person in the position of final judgement.

How come I never hear about guns saving lives?

Why is it always accidents, school shooting, random brutal killings.

Seriously, someone needs to re-look gun control at its roots.

hmm...as i beat the dead horse...
I shot my first rifle - .22 at age 5. not a dangerous thing if the proper rules are drilled, i.e. 1. treat every weapon as if it were loaded, 2. never point a weapon at anything you do not intend to shoot, 3. keep finger straight and off the trigger until you are ready fire, 4. keep your weapon on safe until you intend to fire. 5. know your target and what lies beyond, and unless you are doing actual combat shooting (not an issue for children...usually) don't put a round in the chamber until your weapon is pointed down range and you are about to shoot it.
These were rules easily taught and hammered very very hard into my head before I was even allowed to touch a weapon. I was shown very explicitly what happens when you shoot something - as a result, I was quite ready and willing to follow the rules in place to prevent that from happening to me or anyone else. Even a 5 yr old can understand that.
However, when any person of whatever age or experience is to handle a weapon, they must have the appropriate knowledge of that weapon; its capabilities, its dangers, *how it recoils*. The age of this child is in my opinion not an issue in terms of firing a weapon, but his lack of experience and knowledge with the weapon, not to mention the lack of strength required to control it should have made it a ridiculous notion to equip him with a fully automatic weapon which many adults can't handle. I wouldn't just hand a SMAW (a shoulder launched rocket) to someone and say, this a rocket, be carefull, I would have to go through an entire process of training, and ensure that the person understands what not to do with it - fireing it with people behind you for example...
Point being, some of you think it's completely ludicrous to give a child of this age *any* weapon, and some of you think it's perfectly fine to give him an automatic weapon. I would dissagree on both points. Shooting can be perfectly safe, but some people just shouldn't shoot certain weapons. And really what purpose does an 8 yr old have for an automatic anyway? In this country anyway. I've seen worse in other places...
A damn shame that this happened, because it illustrates just how stupid some people are. It is so simple to use firearms safely, but people still f- it up. Funny how I personally think that proper care and use of firearms can be taught to everybody, even children, but I somehow doubt the ability of the general populace to pull their heads out of their rears long enough to do it right.
I feel for the guy I do, it's a terrible thing to happen to your child, but he is completely and totally responsible for it.
poor kid.

whomever put the gun in that poor childs hands is guilty of childslaughter in my book

I am so sorry for this child. Ignorance will not be bliss in this instance. Peace be with them.

WOW... there are some real fools on this board... so, hey fools... Just a couple questions.
I dunno, maybe I'm slow sometimes (no matter how WELL TRAINED I AM!!!)

Where is there a need for a child handle an UZI? What would that need be?
Is this a Post apocalyptic time ? Are we in the Darfur region of western Sudan ?
Maybe our U.S. Republic is no longer a democratic system and is now a feudalistic system ?
Hmm... maybe we're in civil war right now and I just don't realize it...?
Uh oh! I should get some fully automatic weapons to guarantee a kill against
the hordes of enemies trying to kill me now! idiots!

Passing on a tradition of the 2nd amendment is one thing, for a mature young person
but,try and be smart and not an idiot when a child has died from absolute ignorance...
And if you want to be technical, anyone using the 2nd amendment as an excuse
to justify ownership, is also very ignorant and obviously hasn't read it
and definitely doesn't understand it.
...And probably isn't shouldn't posses a firearm in the fist place.

To be honest... growing up I had friends and kids who were neighbors and their fathers took them on hunting trips and shooting ranges all the time. I think guns are good in that that they can provide a father the chance to teach his son responsibility. How ever it was the lack of responsibility of this boy's parent and everyone else present that lead to this. There are classes on gun safety that parents and their kids can enroll in together. For god's sake don't give the kid something as powerful as an Uzi. I think it's not just the parent's fault for lack of responsibility, but everyone else who was there because no one took the initiative to prevent it.

No, no, no. An eight year old is a fully competent shooter. Please, I was flying a Cessna 152 at that age. I was shooting a 300 H & H Magnum at that age. I was driving a tractor. If you can't handle the heat, stay out of the woods.

Fully automatic firearms should only be in the hands of those trying to overthrow the us government, jeeze guys, get it right.

Handing an 8 year old kid a fully automatic Uzi should be grounds for reckless endangerment and man slaughter.

You all are so silly. My boy is nine and has been handling Uzi's for almost two years now. It's obvious that the guns are safe. This was just an unfortunate accident.

The comments from the nut-jobs on here are ridiculous. I'm all for 2nd amendment rights, but no it is NOT ok for an 8 year old to fire an automatic weapon, even with supervision. What more proof do you need than this real life example? I suppose you think it's alright to drive drunk, as long as it's done responsibly? Or maybe it's alright for an 8 year old to drive an 18 wheeler, as long as there is an instructor in the cab? Get a clue. Even adults have problems controlling automatics. That's why these are military weapons, not hunting rifles.

So, in our country it's OK for an adult to hand an 8 year old an UZI to play with, but if the same adult smokes a joint it's a crime punishable by inprisonment?

We've all made stupid choices in our lives, but most of us can look back on them and say "wow, that was stupid, glad i learned a lesson".
not so for this child or his family.
my heart goes out to the family and friends.
as sad and tragic as this is, and as much as we see an obvious need for change in the way these events are structured, i would caution all of you to not let this be a case to ban or restrict the public's owning an using firearms.
you would no more give a child a machine gun, as the keys to a Ferrari.
let everyone be judged by their actions, not by the tools they own.

Yes, this is tragic. My father is a gun smith and I have been around guns my entire life. There were guns left everywhere in the house BUT I knew not to touch them thankfully my father was smart enough to teach me how to handle and shoot guns also the damage done if used uncorrectly. I also allow my 4 year old son to shoot because the more he knows about guns and how to use them the less likley he is to harm himself or others.
GUNS DON'T KILL PEOPLE. IGNORANT PEOPLE WITH GUNS KILL PEOPLE.

While I respect Shibby's compassion for the family, I cannot agree that the public should remain silent about the madness that allowed this tragedy to happen.
No doubt, this boy's heartbroken father will never forgive himself. But that does not make him immune to public condemnation. What he did WAS unforgivable.
I am no fan of guns or the gun culture, but I believe the majority of gun owners are responsible people who are equally horrified by this act of gross negligence.
After all, rights come with responsibilities. That's why the right to free speech does not protect those who yell "fire" in a crowded theatre. And only the hopelessly stupid could argue that the right to bear arms justifies giving an Uzi to an eight year old.
The Second amendment is no more absolute than the First. Even if I could afford it, my right to "arms" does not allow me to buy - say - a nuclear warhead. Society already limits the amount of lethal force that can be given to those unqualified to have it. And surely, giving high powered military weapons to children makes no more sense than giving cruise missiles to the criminally insane.

i'm sorry.. "accidents" ? "can't change" ?

This kid didn't live on the west bank of Palestine. He was struggling with his 5 times table and trying to get through the night without wetting the bed. He wasn't even a THIRD of the way old enough to drink alcohol (in some states), or HALFWAY old enough to look at pornography. He can't vote. He probably can't tie his shoelace... and the father probably doesn't trust him to use the VCR without sticking peanut butter sandwiches in it yet.

But you people still think there's a SAFE or RESPONSIBLE way to teach him how to handle an Uzi 9mm. Umm.. for WHAT reason ? If it's purely for sport - give him a paintball gun. If it's for personal protection - well.. you don't need an uzi for that.. and besides.. you can't carry weapons in public anyway so it's not like it stops him from being abducted. And I don't think civil war is going to necessitate the arming of 8 year olds with fully automatic weapons just yet.

So WHY ?... What possible reason could an 8 year old have for knowing how to "responsibly shoot a fully automatic weapon" ?

Answer: There isn't one. If you say there is, then you are backward and paranoid and deluded and need serious, serious help.

What happened here is wrong on SO many levels... but what is happening in these comments is far far worse. I honestly have SO much pity for anyone who thinks there's a reason for an 8 year old to use a fully automatic weapon.

Another senseless tragedy caused by guns not properly secured. Go ahead NRA, blame the kid, its never the fault of the gun or the gun owner. At the very least the owner should be prosecuted for making the gun available. Stupid people that believe owning guns is a God given right need to understand they are 100% responsible to society for what happens with their guns.

Natural Selection.

We are humans, a species, I wish no harm to any living creature, but your value for human life is way too high.

Granted a little boy and all, his dad should have kept a closer eye, his mom shouldn't have let him go... blah blah blah.

Guns like any other "TOOL" are just that, ban idiots or establish an IQ test for a weapons permit.

I believe in 2nd ammendment rights...however as has been stated over and over again fully and semi-automatic weapons serve no purpose other than to kill other human beings. Can anyone give me one good reason why the average citizen needs an automatic weapon? Or a reason why an 8 year old should be allowed to shoot one, even at a so called safe gun range?
I guess we American's haven't learned from all the school shootings and the out of control murder rates in urban areas across the country that kids and guns don't mix. And that it is much too easy for them to not only get guns, but to inflict serious harm in the blink of an eye.

Two little words that so many people hate to hear, its all I can think of.. Those two words seem to infuse so much respect for guns in countries that have those two words as a part of their reasonable laws... "GUN CONTROL"... seems simple. (And yeah, you can get mad at me for that, but if you think differently you SHOULD be mad at the father of the child and the gun club that let this happen)

Two little words that so many people hate to hear, its all I can think of.. Those two words seem to infuse so much respect for guns in countries that have those two words as a part of their reasonable laws... "GUN CONTROL"... seems simple. (And yeah, you can get mad at me for that, but if you think differently you SHOULD be mad at the father of the child and the gun club that let this happen)

Steve:

>we believee the maturizism is has not been formed in most children till then.

Your points will carry more weight when you take just a few seconds and review what your wrote.

Sad thing is I google the kids father and he is an Emergency Physician. All that book sense and very little common sense.

Wow how the hell do one get an licences for an uzi anyhow???.....arn't automatics illlegal over in the states??...here we struggle to get an simple pistol licences ( i live in South africa) ...Look i support the notion of self defence..and i have had to use my firearm in self defence.."did not need to fire it tough"...and i believe that there should be proper training schools and that they should be an mandatory requierment for any one owing an firearm.......but still wat kind of asshole gives an 8 year old an uzi??..these are the kind of peaple who give all gun owners an bad name...please don't paint us all with the same brush..were not all an bunch of idiots.

The conservatives in this country promotes no abortion under any circumstance but also promote a gun culture that indirectly fuels and feeds the war machine factories during peacetime , what a contradiction!!!! I could never understood that contrast. Having a right to bear arms doesn't mean doing stupid acts like that.

Don't know too much about american law but in the UK both the gun club and the boys father could be up for manslaughter charges, or 3rd degree murder I think you call it in the US. But then again in the US guns are part of life and with groups such as the club in the artical and the NRA I guess you reap what you sow, The constitution needs to be reviewed and a suitable/safe intrpretation of the right to bear arms must be defined by the government and strict gun laws introduced if people want this and pointless outher deaths to be avoided.

When stupid people breed....

The notion of a child dying is quite sad... However, knowing he would grow up just as stupid as his parents... knowing he would grow up believing guns and murder (since that's all guns are good for) are acceptible in society... knowing he would eventually pass on those immoral lessons to his own children.

Well he's just another martyr and proof of what a derranged and disgusting society we live in.

You know, if an instructor really had anything to do with this, they would have taught the kid to lean in on the gun, then the recoil would'nt have done so much damage before ANYONE with common sense could have stopped the kdi from shooting more.

Quoting:
"Proof that the racists are gunning up for an Obama Presidency. That's what's really going on. The Eric Rudolphs and Timmy McVeighs are coming out of the woodwork. Forget about Black Water or National Guard. Fear and Loathe the rightwing religious zealots that are drying their wings. Everyone at that gun range is complicit and guilty of criminal charges. Conspiracy is a serious crime. (Posted by Titonwan October 27, 08 11:23)"

Sir, you have a serious issue..... get serious and stop being part of the problem.

Wow and I thought Americans were careless with their guns.

Whats that the gene pool is a little cleaner now? How about that.

Whats that the gene pool is a little cleaner now? How about that.

Type your comment here...

To Kellykkl,

No one gets shot in China?. That's great. They just get arrested for speaking their mind,, so it's OK.

Dad, Mom and organizers - fuc*ing retards. RIP little boy. So sad. Manslaughter?

Dad, Mom and organizers - fuc*ing retards. RIP little boy. So sad. Manslaughter?

The dad needs to be charged with manslaughter - irresponsibility like this should not go unpunished (by the law).

I understand teaching our children about gun safety and how to shoot a gun but if the father was such good father, why was he not standing there helping his child support the force of the UZI!!! This is a weapon I would not even try to shoot much less let my child do it. There is a difference between gun safety, sport, and pure stupidity!!!!

Sad. I'm amazed more people around him weren't killed, too.

If we are to believe Todd Pa lin, this represents the "core values" of America.

"The child's death was not caused by a firearm Matt, you cannot place responsibility or blame on an inanimate object."

Not too bright, are you?

why didn't i have an uzi when i was a kid? i probably wouldn't have shot myself in the face like this winner.

Gun rights people. YOU ARE HURTING YOUR CAUSE!

The people preaching for liberal gun rights here need to pick a better forum and time. You sound like an unreasonable and dangerous zealot when you say anything outside the 'bad parent/bad supervision' topic. And listing out "safe" ways to teach 8 year olds to handle automatics? BREATHTAKING.

We could teach 8 year olds to drive too, they are physicaly big enough, but do you know why we don't? Because they are KIDS and kids FORGET. Plus the judgement center in a human brain isn't done developing till you are in your early 20's.

For all we know that boy did get all the training you prescribed and usualy fires the gun with complete safety. But hes a kid. He forgets.

YOU ARE HURTING YOUR CAUSE!

Please. I have a lot of sypathy for your cause. I want to own a gun someday and if you keep talking like this you are going to ruin if for me. You are whipping up your opponents and all the fence sitters into a rabid froth.
You must be reasonable.

I

What kind of an idiot lets an 8-year-old fire a gun on full auto? Hell the kid probably wasn't even strong enough to handle the recoil from a 9mm handgun, let alone an Uzi.

from someone that lives maybe 1 mile from this place, which is also 1/4 of a mile from high school, mind you, I am DISGUSTED by what happened. Not only do I take my 9 month old son and dog for walks in that area, children ride thier bikes around there, people run by there... it is a wonder that no one else was hurt.... and the father is an ED doctor, you would think that he would have better sense than that given what he sees on a daily basis. I hope that they close down the club and secure it, put an age limit in place and do a thorough review of the legislature to make sure that this NEVER happens again. How do you explain this to this child's friends? That his parents were neglectful and ignorant?

All I can say is WHAT THE HELL were the parents thinking and why is an 8 yr old allowed to "accidently" shoot himself @ a gun shoot/training event? (Key word : training) It's a horrible thing have happen to an 8yr old who really should of been gee I don't know SUPERVISED???? The people who put on the event and the parents are the ones to blame....they made that bed;not gonna be fun sleeping in it.

But it's a holy gun! Uzi, short for Uziel, an Israeli made gun. Uziel, also known as the angel of mercy...

I blame god.

Total number of U.S. hyperthermia deaths of children left in cars, 2008: 42

Where is the outcry to outlaw this happening in Massachuesetts? Currently there is no law against it......

Guess its better to fear an inanimate object than to actually place blame on the negligent parent.

I was there. It was so sad. When my husband and I arrived I thought, why are there so many children here? Then I figured, well they must only be allowed to watch or shoot the 22's. Then after signing all our waivers to even get into the event we were walking down the line of ranges and I was amazed children were shooting. I stopped at that exact range to watch. They were shooting at pumpkins, instructors were standing behind them with their hands on the kids shoulder and back of firing arm suporting them. We then walked further to see what else ther was. A few minutes later people were screaming cease fire, cease fire. The place went silent except for the boy screaming. I will never forget that screaming. Christopher was alive as I watched him be loaded into the ambulance, his father could barely climb into the ambulance he was so shaken. As I did not see it directly I will always wonder just how it happened. As I said the instructors were holding on to the kids as they shot. But from all the reports no one was holding on to Chistopher, I have to wonder was he so excited he didn't wait for the instructor and just started shooting? As an adult gun owner, I shoot skeet. My husband and I thought it would be exciting to watch pumpkins get blown up, oh... the other stuff not mentioned in the ad were, a boat, washing machine, car, things of that nature. Well we were wrong, it was not exciting it was down right tragic. The club had been having this event for years and we hadn't gone before, now I wish we never had gone at all.

I thought that it was illegal to modify a semi-auto weapon to full auto status unless you were military or police. The club should be in hot water over this.

I thought that it was illegal to modify a semi-auto weapon to full auto status unless you were military or police. The club should be in hot water over this.

I bet he looked cool though

I was there. It was so sad. When my husband and I arrived I thought, why are there so many children here? Then I figured, well they must only be allowed to watch or shoot the 22's. Then after signing all our waivers to even get into the event we were walking down the line of ranges and I was amazed children were shooting. I stopped at that exact range to watch. They were shooting at pumpkins, instructors were standing behind them with their hands on the kids shoulder and back of firing arm suporting them. We then walked further to see what else ther was. A few minutes later people were screaming cease fire, cease fire. The place went silent except for the boy screaming. I will never forget that screaming. Christopher was alive as I watched him be loaded into the ambulance, his father could barely climb into the ambulance he was so shaken. As I did not see it directly I will always wonder just how it happened. As I said the instructors were holding on to the kids as they shot. But from all the reports no one was holding on to Chistopher, I have to wonder was he so excited he didn't wait for the instructor and just started shooting? As an adult gun owner, I shoot skeet. My husband and I thought it would be exciting to watch pumpkins get blown up, oh... the other stuff not mentioned in the ad were, a boat, washing machine, car, things of that nature. Well we were wrong, it was not exciting it was down right tragic. The club had been having this event for years and we hadn't gone before, now I wish we never had gone at all.

As I've been reading the comments I can't believe how many people thought this was "funny" enough to make a sick joke out of it. Apparently, you do not have children yourselves. This little boy was probably so excited just to be spending the day with his dad and brother.......the thought of losing a child like that is absolutely baffling to me. Why do people feel the need to allow children to shoot guns?? He should of been riding his bike or playing wiffle ball...my heart goes out to his family. Trust me, that father will be punished every second of every day for the rest of his life one way or the other.

Poor judgment on the behalf of the parents. Single shot 22 would have been fine, or if the father would have held the firearm. Poor judgment. Sad story but accidents happen.

So I guess the next logical thing to do will be to ban cars, because some jackass behind the wheel was negligent and hit a kid.........

Come on, really?

Obviously the father was negligent and should suffer the consequences.

Once again let's not forget that we have all of our marvelous rights and priveledges, including being able to say what you want on a website, thanks to brave men who made it possible and did so with a gun in their hand.

It's amazing that all of you tree huggin' hippies out there are always trying to get things banned because it doesn't suit your agenda. I have some advice for ya:

1. put down the bong
2. eat some meat
3. shoot a gun
4. stop considering anything the media reports as fact!

And lastly, stop trying to save the world and start trying to save America and honor your ancestors by preserving the Constitution!

And if you can't manage that. Get the hell out!!

So.. I have to ask. More people die at public swimming pools than at shooting ranges. If the kid drowned would you be screaming for a swimming pool ban? Would you cry and beg for "water control" to "protect the children"?
The idiotic drivel of "We need to ban this!! Some one save us!" is what is sickening. If this was a kid getting killed because a parent drank and drive you would not give it a second thought. However, with it being a gun involved you get on your self-righteous pedestal and condemn firearm owners. Yes it was bad safety and a stupid accident, but how is that the fault of gun owners as a whole? I bet a good portion of the people blaming gun ownership has drank (even just a little bit) and drove before.. making you FAR more likely to kill someone than a gun owner. USE SOME COMMON SENSE, SHEEPLE!

Giving an eight year old a fully automatic UZI (fully automatic anything for that matter) is a recipe for disaster. Fully automatic weapons do EXACTLY what is described by the events, they, like all fire arms "walk upwards after each round is discharged", with a fully automatic weapon, it's no-longer a walk, it's a run. An eight year old doesn't have the physical strength or coordination to keep a weapon like that under control. The father and any other adult that sanctioned this needless tragedy should be charged with manslaughter at the very least.

As to other comments on this thread as to why anyone would need a "fully automatic weapon of any kind", I respectfully direct your attention to 2A - and before you go off, site me one, *just one*, other reference to "the people" in the DOI, BOR or Constitution where "the people" refers to a government entity (like the national guard) and doesn't refer to the individual citizenry. Also, the term "free state" thwarts any likening to the "National Guard" as they have been fully federalized - who sent our boys and girls in the National Guard to the middle east, under orders from their own state, of by the Federal Government. Have you ever thought that maybe, just maybe, the BOR was written in order of importance? If you don't have free speech, you don't have anything. If you don't have the right to bear arms, you don't have the ability to protect your right to free speech.

The fact of the matter is, in this case, it was neglect and sheer lunacy that allowed this to happen, but 150 some odd years ago, children on the frontier were known to regularly carry flint-lock rifles to school - and we don't have any accounts of kids going crazy killing each-other or themselves with their muskets. A gun "kills" no differently than a knife or a hammer, only more effectively. It is a failure first of the parents and then of the state for failing our collective children's education.

Personally, I use my fully automatic weapons to protect my vegetable garden from Vegetarians and Vegans. To them, it's harvest day, but to the carrots, it is the holocaust. I say, let the rabbits wear glasses.

I feel really sorry for the family (and the kid), but really? Handing a fully-automatic rifle to a kid? That's asking for trouble.

At 8 I was plinking away with air-rifles and 22s. It was only later that anyone let me touch larger guns (and then only after careful teaching and coaching). There were several where adults just looked at me and said "You aren't big enough." (As in I wouldn't be able to physically control the weapon, like what happened here.)

Now, I still haven't shot a fully-automatic weapon (though I kind of would like to), but before I do so, you better believe I'd be carefully taught and briefed so that I could handle it properly.

This was gross-negligence on part of whoever gave the kid the uzi, but so would letting an 8 year-old drive a formula-one race-car. Of course someone is going to get hurt, but it isn't the race-car's fault.

The kid should have been more careful with the gun. Maybe read up on an Uzi before he fired it. Dumb kids.

American Ideology of guns is just dumb.

guns arent SAFE! people are hurt by guns everyday!!! someone should have givin him a chainsaw instead, much more fun to run around with.

I was taught very young the right and wrong of guns. I hunted pheasants at 7 with a 410 single shot shotgun. I did well. I also used the 410 to rid the hay field of pocket gophers. My parents were smart enough to not give me a 12 gauge automatic.. Match the person’s ability to the weapon. No one in my family has had nor will they have a fire arm accident.. accidents don’t just happen, they are created by people making bad decisions.

I am a retired army colonel and cop. My wife is an FBI agent.

Obviously this child was in a well-regulated militia, or he wouldn't have been firing the weapon. His chain of command should be held responsible for his death.

Ooops, forget it. I forgot that our courts haven't gotten around to correcting the insane notion that the 2nd Amendment gives individual citizens the right to own weapons. Read about the wording of the original amendment, the debates about it, and the final language. Perhaps when more people do that, they will understand that not every single citizen is granted the right to own a weapon simply because he or she feels like it.

And don't give me this "the Courts have already decided!" All courts, even the Supreme Court, have made decisions throughout history that were obviously at odds with our Constitution, and we look back now and say, "How in hell did they come to such a corrupt decision?!?!"

Also, you idiots who think you need weapons in case the need arises to fight the government? Good luck going up against military weapons systems. Why are you not trying to defend and assert your right to own tanks, grenades, nuclear weapons, artillery, cluster bombs, bunker busters, fighter aircraft, assault helicopters, and other powerful weapons? After all, if you need to fight the government or some other invading force, you should be able to compete on an even playing field. If the 2nd Amendment truly applies to the individual and that individual's right to own a weapon, then it must follow that the citizen can own any weapon in existence. But that's ridiculous, and you know it, and it shows the folly of the idiots who completely misconstrue what the 2nd Amendment really says, and what it really means.

The death of this child is on all the idiots who promote gun ownership, the sickos in the NRA, the rednecks who are too dumb to evolve into civilized society.

The VAST majority of legal gunowners practice safely and never have an incident like this occur. The Father should probably be charged. This was just unnecessary and brought about by sheer stupidity on the father's part. Of course an incident like this brings out the "guns scare me" moonbats who insist we all need to be afraid of guns and get rid of them. No, I won't get rid of my firearms. No, I'd never give my kid a fully automatic firearm to shoot. Owning guns isn't "dumb". Not everyone is part of the urban/suburban scurry about like rats culture. If you don't own a gun, fine, no one's forcing you. But really....lay the snot nosed elitist superiority aside.

I've been shooting everything from .22LR to .45ACP since I was 7. I've never shot myself in the head. Someone should have told him to keep his arms stiff and down. But the kid is also an idiot. When they barrel is raising towards your head, you should probably let go of the trigger.

This is a terrible tragedy that could have easily been avoided. I can't even imagine how the boy's father must feel right now. He's going to have to live with this the rest of his life. We are always so quick to judge when we don't know the whole story. What if it wasn't the first time the boy shot a gun. What if someone was supporting him while he shot. So many what if's I'm not one for assuming and living on what if. The damage has been done, and berating a father for a decision that led to tragedy only makes things worse. Mistakes are made everyday. Some just have dire consequences.

WHO LETS THEIR EIGHT YEAR OLD FIRE AN UZI!?!?! you start kids with low powered guns and work their way up only when you are sure they have the sense for it and you never leave them unattended with a high powered weapon. when i was eight i was only starting to fire high powered rifles and was always being watched. now the liberals are gonna be all over this trying to ban guns some more due to careless parenting.

Guns don't kill people, I DO!

Thats a quote from a T-shirt I once saw... I don't actually kill people....

I'm just waiting for a follow up story which entails this family suing the gun manufacture over this sad incident. Only in america!

This IS a RARE incident folks thats thats why it made the news. Bad things happen sometimes. You don't start banning things just because of someone's bad judgement. Kids could die riding their bicycle, swimming or playing sports. But thats not going to make national news. We need our guns for when society thinks that we want stay as a FREE nation rather then be subjects.

I cannot believe this was allowed to happen!!!

What adults in their right minds would allow an 8 year old to fire a LOADED UZI SUBMACHINE GUN?

Anyone associated with that club and the father should rot in jail for the remainder of their pitiful lives.
What kind of laws do we have that UZI submachine guns are allowed in the hands of citizens, let alone children????????????
Barb

would you let an 8 year old drive a car on the highway ?? we will let Dad sit in the passanger seat .......Sad Sad Sad.

"Eric October 28, 08 04:13 PM" wrote:
"I forgot that our courts haven't gotten around to correcting the insane notion that the 2nd Amendment gives individual citizens the right to own weapons."

- If we're going to strike out the amendments to the constitution on a whim that we don't like, that is a very, very slippery slope and to suggest such shows an utter lack of lessons already learned through history - even recent history. As soon as you put white-out to the constitution, you'll get nutters (like the anti-gun nutters) who, every generation or so, will have a majority vote to strike out amendments like, um, say, 19 or maybe 13? When the nutters at the beginning of the last century got enough votes to put in 18, they eventually had to admit how idiotic they were, and add 21.

"Eric October 28, 08 04:13 PM" went on to write: "Also, you idiots who think you need weapons in case the need arises to fight the government? Good luck going up against military weapons systems." shows, yet again, that "history", even recent - like, yesterday, has no bearing on reality. Using small-arms, house hold chemicals, ingenuity, bravery and eventually, seized munitions is EXACTLY why a "military weapons system" works great at creating parking lots, but sucks at an occupation. The Maquis in WWII, the Nazi Werewolves shortly there after, peasants in pajama's putting a world superpower through a meat grinder in the South Asian jungles and, right now, the number of our boys who have fallen to small arms and the cry "Allahu Akbar" - crack yourself upside the head with a clue x 4 dude.

You people are all complete MORONS. The instructor should be in jail for failing to maintain control of the weapon, hence at all times have his hand on the firearms. He failed to do this and it cost a little boy his life. NOT the FATHER! The poor father must be ready to kill himself and must live with this forever! Just like when you trust your teenager to get behind the wheel with instructor, if he falls asleep and they crash, the instructor FAILED in his responsibility.
Anyone calling this father names should try to place themselves in his shoes right now! This entire page is full of arsholes/losers

The Right to Bear Arms - It should be amended to the "Right, privilege and capability to bear arms".
I can understand, for the paranoid, handguns for personal protection. I can understand shotguns, for target shooting and Hunting, as well as large bore weapons.
But someone please explain to me, the "normal" requirements for a private citizen to own and operate an automatic weapon. It is past "reasonable" for personal defense - it tends to be "non specific" for target shooting, and as for hunting - there is only so much lead, that you should have to pick out of that deer...

I have fired an Uzi. If the father ever had, he would have known not to let the boy handle it as well. I'm thinking maybe the child did something he shouldn't have or something... I'm not sure. The father lost his child, so let's let the investigation continue before acting like this was something it may not have been.

This is awful.

As a UK resident and former forces member i look at america and it's attitude to guns and i feel very sorry for you. Some of the comments on here really give an insight into the mentality of a the posters and an insight into how healthy this culture of guns is for you as individuals and your country in general. If your freedom is so delicate that you all need to own firearms then you don't have a freedom worth having. No sane sensible person puts a fuly automatic uzi into the hands of a child and there should definately be charges bought for this incident. Recently i have thought the UK was not a good place to live but seeing these sort of incidents happening it isn't as bad as america. Those of you that oppose gun control really need to ask yourself if the right to own an arsenal is more important then the lives of people.

The entire lot of commentators are quite presumptuous. The boy could have accompanied his father to the event when he decided to wander off and do something against his father's instructions. What he's doing at the club is solely the father's fault, but I've seen many other children taken to these types of meets and nothing has happened until now. This death is incredibly sad, don't mistake me on this point, but wait until the evidence is gathered before you begin pointing fingers. I think the father really has suffered the ultimate consequence/rebuke already.

I am a 28 y/o male from central MA, friends and family that hunt and have offered to take me hunting/shooting but I have never discharged a firearm or handled a loaded firearm. I never plan to, and with 2 children I will never, ever allow a firearm in my house, loaded or not.

I do not hunt and target practice is not a sport I would enjoy. My Grandfather is an expert marksman with a pistol, 40+ years in the National Guard and has never kept a gun in his house. My sister keeps one in her house in Charlotte, NC and although I don't like it, it is her choice and her right... that's enough about my (and family's) history with guns.

I believe in the right, but choose not to bear arms. I believe in our Bill of Rights and Constitutional Amendments, they are the means that allow "we the people" to be free and make our own choice. We are lucky enough to live in a country in which we have that choice, unfortunately there is a very small percentage of people that make a decision based upon what has been determined as a "right" to own and fire weapons by our government as a "safe" thing to do, such as allowing a small child to fire an automatic weapon. When in court you cannot plead stupidity to the law, you should also not be allowed to plead stupidity PERIOD. What the father and family has to live with is the most awful thing imaginable, not “us”(all of us that have a opinion), by “us” blaming the government and a need for "new regulations" or "lack of regulations on firearms by Democrats or Republicans" does not supply an answer for the poor decisions that were made last Sunday. Awareness of our actions as parents, responsibility for decisions made as adults, and using common sense as grown and mature human beings should be the next amendment made, instead of pointing fingers when tragedies happen.

When held accountable by our laws and held in prison rights are taken away such as the right to bear arms, free speech, voting, etc…
Is it also a Constitutional right to raise your child?
What do you think is the most painful “right”, Constitutional or not, to take away from a father?
Constitutional rights and raising a child are privileges that can be taken away by making a terrible decision.
Laws were not broke this past weekend when a young child died tragically; multiple people made a terrible decision and the greatest “right” in life has been denied to a parent and those who may have met the boy who lost his life.

Was it Bart Simpson?

8 years old. Springfield hospital.

This is obviously a terrible tragedy. These guns are NOT out there in the civilian population, they require a special permit, this is why they have organized shooting exhibitions for these types of weapons. Unfortunately, the judgement of the parent and instructor did not prevent this unnecessary death. Maybe legislation should be in place to limit minors from firing such weapons. Many kids grow up with proper gun education as this child did, but this weapon proved to be too much and should have not been in an 8 year old's hands. This has no bearing on millions of law abiding citizens who we never hear about because they are safe gun owners. In a time where our police departments are buying more lethal weapons because of the criminal element acquiring more dangerous weapons the anti-gun groups want law abiding citizens to disarm. When seconds count the police are minutes away. We have a right to own firearms for the purpose of defense of ourselves, families and country. As the anti-gun lobby attempts to dismantle our constitution they should know they open the door for losses of rights they may want but the precedent will already have been set.

American's need to realize that owning guns is not needed. This won't be the last time it happens, as you can see by all the video's available on youtube there are way too many yokels that are able to get their hands on uzi's, machine guns, and even larger guns. Wake up America...you don't need them!

I'm so upset with this story. I don't own a gun. I don't wish for stronger gun control. I do know what a gun was intended for. A gun is a machine that started with one purpose - to easily hunt for food. That's why it was created. To cause death. If you are not afraid of that, then you are looking to cheat death. You should learn gun safety, because you are scared of dying or causing a death.

Someone tell me why an 8 year old needs to learn how to fire a gun? Hunting? Recreation? I can't imagine why a parent would EVER put their child in an unessesary situation where death is a possibility.

"I can't imagine why a parent would EVER put their child in an unessesary situation where death is a possibility. "
* Dont take your kid to the beach then, it's unncessary.
* Dont take your kid in the car, it's unncessary.
* Don't feed your kid, could choke -that's unncessary.
* Don't allow your child to use utensils - eat with their hands, it's unncessary.
haha,, btw, go check how many kids die as a result of bee stings and compare to shooting accidents.

I know where not to look when I have an accidental death in my family. You guys are cruel, looking for any excuse to attack someone. The man is devastated enough and obviously blames himself. It's not your place to have a judgement toward him. Did he hold the gun and shoot his son? SHUT UP.

We won't let children eat fast food or come in contact with cigarettes but we allow them to handle and fire weapons only designed for one purpose and that is to kill. At least with junk food and cigarettes you would live longer that 8 years. Rest in peace young man hopefully your death will not be in vain!!!

This was a show where it was advertised in big letters No License Required. There were dozens of supposedly safety-conscious adults there.

It's a risk benefit thing. All activities are risky, even crossing the street. But some are simply not worth the risk. Allowing an 8-year-old to experience the "thrill" of an Uzi, for example.

Are those parents trying to put toys manufacturers out of business? Whatever happened to toy guns for children?

Their passion for innocent blood apparently blinded those parents. If they couldn't predict and prevent this deadly outcome for their little boy, one may presume that they are not likely to feel despair over the loss of their little angel, thanks to their damaged conscience.

May God forgive their mental and moral incompetence.!

After Awhile, I just skimmed these posts. So many anti-gun people with mean-spirited rage ! How many of you ever fired an Uzi ? I don't see any hands .
I doubt any of you would have predicted that the gun could turn a summersault and fire into the boy's head . Of course it is clear after the fact .
Automatic weapons are fun to shoot, give people a chance to get a little closer to the history of war , to learn about technology . ALL guns descend from a gun designed to kill ; the original purpose of a gun was military . You gun phobes with your contempt , anger and hindsight are the ridiculous ones here. Millions of rounds are fired each year for sport that you never hear about -this accident happens and you want to confiscate the property of good citizens. You don't want to let kids enjoy the shooting sports . You ignore England's violent crime problem and its people's inability to deter crime . You don't bother to get the facts before insulting others .

guns become toys.. just because we are fortunate to live in a country without war...

I have a question for all those that keep saying that "Guns only have one purpose, to KILL!"
If that was the case, then why is it that over 99.9% of a time a gun is used, nobody dies?
Guns are a weapon. How they are used and what they are used for can only be determined by the person using that weapon. If someone intends to shoot targets, they shoot targets. If someone intends to shoot wild game, they will (try to at least). If someone intends to use a gun to threaten someone into handing over their wallet, then it's used to threaten.
In this case, they intended to shoot a pumpkin. They intended to give a boy a thrill of shooting a fully automatic weapon. Things went horribly wrong, and whether anyone will be found negligent or not is yet to be determined. To simply say that guns are designed to kill and that's why this happened is foolishness.

The anti-gunners posting here have the same ignorant passion to ban firearms as they have for electing the socialist anti-christ "Nobama". The sad part is drooling liberal idiots are becoming the norm for American society. Liberalism will be the undoing of America, if it hsan't already damaged her beyond repair. The level of ignorance expressed by the majority of all you "I know absolutely nothing about firearms, but I know they are horrible because the liberal media tells me they are" people is terrifying! I get the definite impression you all think if we get everyone in the world together for a hand-holding prayer and group hug all violence will end.
hug all the violence and hatred willhug

Context. Context. Context. At the time of the constitution, we were no different than the developing nations that are currently teaching 8 year olds (even girls) to use automatic, military use weapons today (only we had muskets at the time of our desperate freedom conflict). We were a gorilla rebel force that had to take extreme measures to ensure the preservation of human rights and the freedoms we enjoy now (even then I don't remember reading about using 8 year olds in the field). We won the battle. We won it over 200 years ago. We the People have control - no matter which party is in office. Therefore, our right to bear arms should be viewed like anyother constitutional right as time passes - it must be analysed, reviewed, considered and interpreted to fit the rights we have to new technologies (for you ultra conservatives that are turning red right now, don't throw stones yet - I have two words "stem cells"). Also consider, the founding fathers didn't know about cell phones, but we've be working hard to determine how it fits into our privacy protections guaranteed by the Constitution. We should carefully consider how guns (which aren't muskets anymore, people) should fit into our rights (as holders of guns and as citizen who can be impacted by guns). The AK-47 was developed in the 40s by the USSR for the Red Army. Browning, on the other hand, was founded by John Browning who intended to focus on sporting guns (i.e. non-military) (though the line has expanded since the 20s). The point is, there are military weapons and sporting weapons. An 8 year old can't serve in our military. Let the military teach its personnel to use Military Weapons (at age 18+) and parents should stick to sporting (non-military) guns with all of the Best Practices for Safety FIRST in place! Even then you are taking a risk, but that is your right based on the current law... you're supposed to deliver your children to the world ALIVE at 18, your call if you want to fail this miserably and tragically!

I am no gun nut and my politics are left wing. In the past two months as a result of invitations from a client, I attended a local gun club with my three boys ages 13, 11, & 8. They all play video games that include shooting and I thought it would be in their own best interests to understand that guns are not toys but are powerful weapons of destruction. All of us took turns being carefully supervised by a qualified weapons handler who teaches people target shooting. They were taught how to hold the various guns we used and had to practice without ammo and demonstrate adherance to the strict instructions of our trainer before they were able to actually shoot. We took precautions with regard to potential recoil and to ensure that the weapons would only be aimed downrange at all times and no one could put their fingers within the trigger area until our instructor gave the all clear. We've enjoyed this experience together and I do not think I am being an irresponsible or bad father by allowing my boys to have this experience. We don't own any guns and I have no intention of buying one but as far as a life experience I don't agree that target shooting with your children means you are a bad parent. Obviously the parent in this story and the trainer did not follow the safety rules (or common sense in not have a child fire a machine gun), but I don't agree with all the attacks posted that pronounce the father to be a moron for taking his son to a shooting range.

Western MA, can't get more hick than that.
In response to some of the more ignorant "I have tread barefoot way back in ye olde times via hunting trips with muh daddy with a rifle in his hand".
Please, do the rest of us a favor and move to Texas.
You're ignorant and your past has nothing whatsoever to do with the present unless you invented the light bulb.
Such comments make you out to be a sexist, rascist, small town uneducated individual.
it only goes to show further proof of Darwinism.

Huzzah
Really? Do we really need to gun expositions?

If it's legal for adults to kill children before they draw their first breath of air through abortion, then what's wrong with a child, I said child, killing himself with a gun? At least the child is innocent and doesn't understand what they are doing!!!

What the story doesn't say is that his father took him to the show, and was taking pictures when his son was shooting. The father, is the chief of the ER at a hospital. He has probably seen hundereds of GSW during his career. Is he really that stupid??!!

1st of all. I would like to give my deepest and humblest condonces to the family in their time of loss. please excuse these selfish ignorants in blame and whining of the matter when at these moments a simple "we are sorry for your loss " would be the most correct comment and "we as good people should make sure a tragedy not ever occurs again" but then again selfishness, greed, and ignorance are at the core of humanity these days for the most. i am truly sorry for your loss, please excuse them.

I have no problem with the fact that an 8-year-old was holding a gun. The face that it was a full automatic Uzi is a different thing. Were not at war here i mean the only gun he should be shooting is a .22 rifle under close super vision

just terrible

first let me say i take both of my boys to the gun ragne every weekend.one is 14 the other is 9.they have both shot every gun i own including a SEMI auto hand gun,but i am never more than two feet away.when i go to the bathroom they go,when i go get a drink they go,when i go to talk to someone down the range they go.they DO NOT fire,hold,touch,or even be with thier guns when i am not.even though i am a gun lover i am not sure i would ever even want or need a fully auto-matic machine gun.so please do not lump all of us gun loving,CHILD loving fathers in with this complete idiot.

yeah when i was five i could dual wield stupidity! You have to crawl before you can walk unless you have a special ability! Yeah whats next 10 year old caused an explosion after manning an explosion and anyone with the surname McQueen might need rehab especially if male!

i love boys club

So, everyone but the dad is responsible for this? Please. He woke his kid up on a Saturday morning, and drove to MA for the express purpose of shooting an automatic weapon. The dad should be up on charges, too, no matter what the DA says.

To all of you freedom haters... I agree that this is very tragic and could have easily been avoided. I am a former Army Ranger.. I also have three children who I do allow on the firing range with the proper training and weapon. Of course I do agree that a fully automatic UZI is not the proper weapon. My heart and prayers do go out to the family.
Banning such a weapon is not the answer. Proper training and adult sepervision is. I agree with the NRA Instructor from Connecticut. He hits the head on the nail.

I am a gun owner and I love to shoot. I have two sons the same age.... I would never let my boys shoot an UZI. COMMON SENSE TELLS ME NOT TO